Stationbreak Newsletter

A monthly newsletter from my office, updating you on what's ahead for CBC British Columbia.

Can't believe it's already May! Summer break is just around the corner and The West is going to be a very busy place.

Today is the first day on the job for our new boss and EVP for English Services Barb Williams. Some folks in Toronto have had the chance to meet her, and the feedback has been incredibly positive. Barb, along with our President Catherine Tait, are planning a visit to Vancouver and Calgary in early June, so stay tuned for your invitation for the meet and greet.

I will be joining the Senior Executive Team and other senior leaders from across CBC/Radio-Canada in Montreal on May 8/9. Our new strategy will be the focus of the 2-day meeting, with the theme of this leadership conference centered on building the best public company for Canadians. The Strategy will be made public towards the end of May. Stay tuned for the road show coming to The West soon!

And it's not every day that someone receives a highly prestigious recognition like the Order of Canada. Well, our Gloria Macarenko did! This is all well-deserved for her remarkable contribution to Canadian broadcasting and for her charitable work. She will be honoured with other recipients at Rideau Hall in the fall. Locally, on May 15 the Canadian Club Vancouver is holding a special event honouring new members to the Order of Canada/Order of B.C. The event will be hosted by Stephen Quinn and takes place at the prestigious Terminal City Club.

Finally, as we continue to take pride in celebrating anniversary milestones, we're happy to mention the following people who have reached the 30 and 40 year marks during the month of April and May 2019. This achievement will be celebrated in 2020.

CONTENTOur photojournalism pilot is well underway in Vancouver with Evan Mitsui and Ben Nelms elevating our creative visual storytelling on digital and television. Watch for their still images during Our Vancouver and our nightly news programs as well as online. If there was ever proof of the power of a single photograph, it's in this lead image - which Ben took on his second day! Thanks to both Evan and Ben for their amazing efforts!

April went out with a bang with the release of the Huawei-Meng Wanzhou joint CBC Vancouver news/current affairs podcast Sanctioned: The Arrest of a Telecom Giant, and the programming on this exceptional effort continues into early May. We're exploring questions around whether the next Cold War will be with China, whether rising anti-Chinese sentiment is being felt around Metro Vancouver, and what exactly extradition is. Meng's next court date is May 6th.

The week of May 6, Daybreak Kelowna rolls out a series on White Collar Crime.

Megan Thomas will roll out the latest in her ongoing coverage of the shortage of lighthouse keepers on the coast. Megan travelled to a remote light station and will file for all platforms in early May. It's part of our ongoing effort to get out into our island communities...and wilderness!

Jean Paetkau is working hard with the CBC BC team to prepare for the Indigenous J School at the end of May. Lots of excitement for the event at the Songhees Wellness centre.

Other big stories coming up this month - a look at the Kosovo refugee crisis 20 years later, with Mike Killeen's interview with someone who came to this country two decades ago. The former mayor of Burns Lake, one of the youngest mayors ever elected in BC, will plead guilty to child sex charges next week, on the same day we have a federal by-election in Nanaimo.

Also next week, watch for stories from Justin McElroy around Airbnb in Vancouver and Whistler, as part of a pan-Canadian data-driven look at the hotel and real estate industry disruptor. Later in May we plan to cover the Olympic surf trials in Tofino, which represents another chance to do experiment with our visual storytelling.

COMMUNITYAmazing community-building! On May 21, Early Edition launches the multi platform series Matheson -- 2 weeks that take us deep inside an inner city high school in Surrey. Jason D'Souza spent a month at LA Matheson Secondary School in Surrey and will cover everything from popularity to race to vaping. It all culminates May 31 with a remote TEE broadcast from the school caf, complete with a pancake breakfast and Bhangra dance performance.

Indigenous Junior J-School is back for another year, this time in Victoria on May 31st.

COMMUNICATIONSSpring is in full bloom and so are we with May's busy lineup of events featuring film, food, fine art and more.

May 2-12BC Today's Michelle Eliot will host the May 3rd Opening Gala of the DOXA Documentary Film Festival, which features a screening of the courageous new film Because We Are Girls. DOXA runs May 2-12 and is Western Canada's largest documentary Film Festival, presenting 82 films over eleven jam-packed days.

May 6-7Daybreak North's Carolina de Ryk will host the ThriveNorth Business Challenge Finals and Awards Ceremony, May 7 at the R.E.M. Lee Theatre. CBC British Columbia is thrilled to sponsor the 2-day event which gives young people aged 18-39 from Northern B.C. the opportunity to showcase their business ideas and compete for up to $10,00

May 11CBC Radio One's Chris Walker returns as the host of Appetite for Art -- an annual fundraiser at the Kelowna Art Gallery on May 11. For one special evening, the Gallery will transform into a 1940's ambience inspired by the classic film, Casablanca, and the unique architecture of Morocco. Proceeds raised at the event will support educational and children's programming at the Gallery.

May 14For more than 14 years, the Jewish Family Services Innovators Lunch has been bringing people together from the general and Jewish community for a memorable luncheon that inspires big ideas. CBC Vancouver's Gloria Macarenko will host the JFS' Innovators Lunch on May 14 at the Hyatt Regency Vancouver.

May 23The Bill Reid Gallery's annual fundraiser, Raven's Feast, returns May 23 and CBC Vancouver's Stephen Quinn is thrilled to host the event which honours Chief James Hart and young emerging artists.The Bill Reid Gallery is the only public gallery in Canada dedicated to Indigenous Northwest Coast Art and was established to celebrate the Haida master artist Bill Reid, and the diverse living cultures of the Northwest Coast.

May 26The 20th Annual STEMCELL Science Fair Fun Run returns on May 26 at Athletes Village, and, as a supporter of community, youth and education, CBC Vancouver is a proud sponsor. Participation in this years Fun Run ensures the success of future Science Fairs in B.C.

May 31We are excited to collaborate on CBC British Columbia's Indigenous Junior J-School, a station initiative where we will be honoured guests of the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations in Victoria and partnering with lead facilitator, Steve Sxwilthul'txw, to introduce journalism to Indigenous students.

CULTUREEdmonton, Calgary, and Vancouver's morning radio hosts and producers will meet in Calgary on May 14 to talk about their programming strategies in the year ahead which include everything from on demand, podcasts and our live programs as well as how to have a greater presence on the visual digital platforms and in community. (3 C's!).

CBC Vancouver has an internal-only posting up for a Municipal Affairs reporter. The creation of this permanent full-time role follows a successful pilot that showed how valuable this content is in a region with close to 20 separate municipalities, a regional government, a transportation authority, and oh right, a Park Board just for fun! The posting is up via iO until May 13th.

A reminder that as part of the Vancouver News Dialogue Survey Action Plan, we are asking for people who have expertise in certain subjects/areas to put up your hand, so we know who you are and can get your help when stories are assigned! We've had a great response so far, but Michelle Siu will send out an email reminder this week to get even more experts on board. Also watch for a meeting invite to discuss the role of reporters in Vancouver, for anyone wondering about what a reporter career path looks like.

CBC MUSICSenior Director of CBC Music, Mark Steinmetz will be missed as he retires at the end of May!

Introducing two new ways for audiences to get CBC Music:https://www.cbc.ca/listenOur new LISTEN site has launched. This is the way for all audiences to get all of the audio offerings of the CBC including: Radio One, CBC Music, CBC Podcasts, and Music Playlists. https://www.cbc.ca/musicHome to all of our great editorial content including articles, Searchlight, the CBC Music Festival, and all of our JUNO special features.

CBC Music's RECLAIMED relocates production to Vancouver. Reclaimed is a weekly series on CBC Radio that explores the many worlds of contemporary Indigenous music from traditional songs and acoustic sounds to Native hip-hop, R&B, and the dancefloor-filling beats of electric powwow. Host, Jarrett Martineau has recently relocated to Vancouver from Toronto and has begun production on the latest episodes from the CBC Music studios on the 3rd floor.

And, this year celebrates the 39th annual Gathering Of Nations, the world's largest Powwow festival, in Albuquerque, NM. To mark the occasion CBC Music has launched their latest playlist: Powwow. Listen Here